Source: Bernama
Date: Oct 24, 2011

NANNING (China),Oct 24 (Bernama)– Top Fruits Sdn Bhd is still waiting for Chinese authorities to conduct an audit of its packaging house in Johor for it to boost the export of frozen durians to China.

Executive Director Dr Tan Sue Yee said demand in China was tremendous but Top Fruits was unable to send its durian products to the 1.4 billion market as only one packaging house in Malaysia had the certification from the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) of China.

The certified packaging house was run by the Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority (FAMA) in Batu Kurau, Perak, he told Malaysian journalists at the 8th China-Asean Expo (CAEXPO 2011) here.

FAMA has brought in 300kg of frozen durian to promote Malaysia’s King of Fruits.

He said the company had a large plantation in Batu Pahat, Johor, and had been exporting its frozen D24 and Musang King durian products to Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Australia out of its packaging house.

“So far, Top Fruits had only been able to send three shipments to Shanghai and Beijing totaling 10 tonnes, since the Chinese government allowed the importation of frozen durian from Malaysia in May.

“We’re waiting for the Chinese authorities to come and audit our packaging house soon, so that we can increase the volume.

“Our volume now is small. We have demand and enough supply but the problem is the capacity of the Batu Kurau packaging house. Our clients have requested five containers but we’re unable to deliver,” he added.

At the six-day CAEXPO 2011 that began on Friday, Top Fruits was among 146 exhibitors at the Malaysia Pavilion hosted by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE).

On the eve of the event, dubbed one of the largest exhibitions in China, the company signed distributorship agreements with Shanghai Qigyan Economy and Racines World Co Ltd.

The signing was witnessed by International Trade and Industry Minister, Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.

Source: The Sun Daily
Date: 20 Oct, 2011

IMAGINE a thin crepe with a rich filling made of high-grade cream and D24 durian flesh. That’s what Sumptuous Desserts offers durian lovers.

This unpretentious-looking kiosk at The Gardens, Mid Valley Megamall, in Kuala Lumpur has been enjoying steady business since it opened four years ago.

Sumptuous Desserts is the brainchild of Chng Lee Lee who was a flight attendant for Malaysia Airlines for 15 years. “I found that after having two children, I needed to stay at home to spend time with them.”

That worked out for a while but boredom soon set in and Chng started helping her husband to run his maid recruitment agency.

But being cooped up in a nine-to-five job was not her cup of tea and so Chng decided to pursue her other passion – food.

“I love to cook although I’m hopeless at baking. I also love durians,” said Chng, which led to the creation of her popular dessert.

She explained that she could not forget her first taste of durian pancake during a stopover in Hongkong while she was with the airline.

Although she lamented the poor quality of the durian used, she recalled: “The marriage of crepe, durian and cream … was perfect.”

So she looked for a recipe for durian pancake and using better quality durian, created a dessert to salivate over.

In order to ensure she has a steady supply of good quality durian all year round for her pancakes, Chng freezes the D24 durian flesh which she gets when it is in season.

Besides the durian pancakes, Sumptuous Desserts’ cempedak and mango pancakes are also popular. Other signature items include durian cream puffs, Swiss rolls, Hokkaido cakes and pavlova.

Still, the durian pancakes are Chng’s best seller, going for RM10 for six pieces or RM4 for two pieces.

Chng has also opened Sumptuous Desserts kiosks at Sunway Pyramid, Ikano and Sungei Wang Plaza and intends to open outlets in Penang and Singapore in the near future.

Sumptuous Desserts at The Gardens is open from 10am to 10pm daily.